The word
lunch originally comes from a shortening of
luncheon, which was once used to mean the same thing but now more specifically refers to a formal
lunch held in connection with a meeting or other special occasion.
Lunch is the
midday meal, commonly eaten around noon (though later in some places). The time at which you eat
lunch is called
lunchtime. A
late lunch is one eaten later than usual.
Lunch isn’t always defined by the time it’s eaten, though. In some places, a midday meal is called
dinner when it’s the main meal of the day. A
light lunch is one that’s not too heavy or filling. A
hot lunch is one that consists of hot foods, as opposed to cold food, like cold sandwiches. A packaged
lunch provided at an event is often called a
box lunch (or a
boxed lunch). A lunch that you pack for yourself is often called a
brown-bag lunch. The term
bag lunch (or
bagged lunch) can refer to one that’s provided or one that you packed yourself. The period allotted to eat lunch during a workday is called a
lunch break or the
lunch hour. In school, this is often called the
lunch period. A business meeting conducted over
lunch can be called a
business lunch, a
lunch meeting, or a
power lunch. According to popular wisdom, there is no such thing as a
free lunch. To
do lunch means to meet someone for
lunch. This is often called a
lunch date.
Brunch is a meal that’s like a combination of breakfast and
lunch, typically eaten between breakfast time and lunchtime. A midmorning break for a
snack—eaten after breakfast but before lunch—can be called
elevenses (in reference to being eaten around 11 a.m.). In the U.K., the term
high tea refers to a late afternoon or early evening meal similar to a light
supper.
Lunch can also be a verb, though this is quite formal and is much less commonly used. To
lunch means to eat
lunch, or to eat something specific for
lunch, as in
We lunched on sandwiches. More specifically, it can mean to engage in lunch as an activity, as in
First we’ll visit the museum, then we’ll lunch, then we’ll see a show.
